Shanghai Electric, ACWA win 700-MW CSP tender in Dubai

Photo by: AETOS Wire

Sep 18 (Renewables Now) - Shanghai Electric Group Co Ltd (HKG:2727) and Saudi company ACWA Power won the tender to build a 700-MW concentrated solar power (CSP) plant in Dubai, it was announced on Sunday.

The contract was awarded by state power utility Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) after the consortium bid to supply electricity at a levelised cost of USD 0.073 (EUR 0.061) per kWh, DEWA said in a press release. According to the company, the power purchase agreement (PPA) and financial close on the project are "due to be finished shortly".

ACWA said in a separate statement that construction start is targeted for 2018.

The AED-14.2-billion (USD 3.86bn/EUR 3.23bn) park will use a 260-metre (853 ft) tower, touted as the tallest of its kind in the world, in combination with parabolic trough CSP. The project includes molten salt energy storage, allowing the CSP park to produce power on demand, even at night.

The facility will be built and operated under the independent power producer (IPP) model and will be completed in several stages, with commissioning slated to begin from the fourth quarter of 2020 onwards. ACWA Power's equity investment commitment amounts to USD 750 million.

The project represents phase IV of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum solar power complex. That huge park is planned to reach 1 GW by 2020 with the commissioning of an 800-MW phase III photovoltaic (PV) power plant. The 200-MW phase II was put online earlier this year. Phase I, of 13 MW, was built by US company First Solar Inc in 2013.

By 2030 the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum solar power plant is planned to hit 5 GW. The project is part of the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 under which the UAE’s largest city aims to achieve a renewables share of 7% by 2020, 25% by 2030 and 75% by 2050.

Veselina Petrova is one of SeeNews Renewables most experienced green energy writers. For several years she has been keeping track of game-changing events both large and small projects and across the globe.